Feb 13 closet makeover diaries: mood board

although february might be a tiny bit early to be considered prime time for spring cleaning, with the new year rolling in i decided one of my goals for the beginning of the year would be a serious closet overhaul. admittedly, i've tried just about everything in the closet overhaul department - shoe racks of all shapes and sizes, folding my jeans, hanging my jeans, having a special trunk at the base of my bed just for jeans (not a thing that works FYI) - and i was starting to get a little discouraged. maybe i just wasn't the type of person who could successful tame her closet?? maybe i'm forever doomed to the dreaded 'i have nothing to wear' territory? i figured having your closet shit together was for people who fold their underwear and brush their teeth for the recommend full three minutes.

1. research

i think it's pretty common knowledge at this point that theKonmari methodis kind of the Holy Grail of getting your shit together from an organization standpoint. i happen to love the book- i've read it several times (though the state of my house and my closet would suggest otherwise) and i think her simple approach of only keeping the stuff that brings you joy is brilliant.

the key is learning how to control the fact that you will inevitably get super emo during the process and have a really hard time getting rid of stuff because for some reason we get super attached to random objects.

the second book that has been massively helpful during the research process is Anuschka Rees' The Curated Closet. she does a killer job of explaining how to actually make the things you own reflect your style and lifestyle and all work together.

2. mood board

i'm a HUGE fan of making mood boards for just about anything. of course, like everyone else, i have a pinterest account, but i never really thought about making a closet mood board outside of pinterest.

one of the things the curated closet book mentions is how important it is to figure out what colors, shapes, silhouettes, patterns, textures and materials you're naturally drawn to- and sometimes when you have 93420 pins on a board (like i do) it's hard to narrow it down and really determine what elements of style you actually love and want to emulate in your own closet.

so here is my mood board so far -

this was actually a really fun exercise, and something you could definitely do on poster board if you don't feel like messing with photoshop. any excuse to cut up magazines and get the glue out is a GREAT one in my book.

now that i can actually see a narrowed down board of things i love, it's a lot easier to notice patterns. here are some of the main things i realized need to play a big role in my closet and in my style:

leather

denim

maxi dresses and skirts

fringe

metallics

global patterns

both earthy and bright colors

gold jewelry

graphic tees

hats

you can go even further with all of this and break it down into specific silhouettes, necklines, styling techniques, etc- but it's huge just to figure out the basics first.

even though i still kind of feel like my closet looks like this ^ i'm excited to curate it into something that really works for my lifestyle and get rid of anything that doesn't.

i'll keep documenting my journey to gorgeous closet land, and will be sure to share any especially helpful tips along the way. in the meantime, for those of you who've already arrived in closet nirvana, what are your secrets?!?!? i'm gonna need all the help i can get.